Religion in Canada encompasses a wide range of beliefs and customs.[4][5] While Christianity was once central and integral to Canadian culture and daily life,[6] Canada has become a secular and post-Christian state.[7][8][9] Although the majority of Canadians consider religion to be unimportant in their daily lives,[10] they still believe in God.[11] The practice of religion is generally considered a private matter throughout society and the state.[12] The constitution of Canada refers to God and the monarch carries the title of Defender of the Faith, however Canada has no official church and the government is officially committed to religious pluralism.[13]
Before the European colonization, a wide diversity of Indigenous religions and belief systems were largely animistic or shamanistic.[14] The French colonization beginning in the 16th century established a Roman Catholic francophone population in New France.[15] British colonization brought waves of Anglicans and other Protestants to Upper Canada, now Ontario.[16] The settlement of the West brought significant Eastern Orthodox immigrants from Eastern Europe and Mormon and Pentecostal immigrants from the United States.[17] The Jewish, Islamic, Jains, Sikh, Hindu, and Buddhist communities—although small—are as old as the nation itself.[18] Rates of religious adherence have steadily decreased since the 1960s.[5] Freedom of religion in Canada is a constitutionally protected right, allowing individuals to assemble and worship without limitation or interference.[19]
According to the 2021 census, Christianity is the largest religion in Canada, with Roman Catholics representing 29.9 percent of the population having the most adherents. Christians overall representing 53.3 percent of the population,[a] are followed by people reporting irreligion or having no religion at 34.6 percent.[20] Other faiths include Islam (4.9 percent), Hinduism (2.3 percent), Sikhism (2.1 percent), Buddhism (1.0 percent), Judaism (0.9 percent), and Indigenous spirituality (0.2 percent).[21] Canada has the second-largest national Sikh population, behind India.[22][23]
^"Religions in Canada—Census 2021". Statistics Canada. October 26, 2022.
^"Religion by visible minority and generation status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts". Statistics Canada. October 26, 2022.
^"Christianity". The Canadian Encyclopedia. October 27, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
^Dianne R. Hales; Lara Lauzon (2009). An Invitation to Health. Cengage Learning. p. 440. ISBN 978-0-17-650009-2.
^ abCornelissen, Louis (October 28, 2021). "Religiosity in Canada and its evolution from 1985 to 2019". Statistics Canada.
^Lance W. Roberts (2005). Recent Social Trends in Canada, 1960–2000. McGill-Queen's Press. p. 359. ISBN 978-0-7735-2955-7.
^Paul Bramadat; David Seljak (2009). Religion and Ethnicity in Canada. University of Toronto Press. p. 3. ISBN 978-1-4426-1018-7.
^Kurt Bowen (2004). Christians in a Secular World: The Canadian Experience. McGill-Queen's Press. p. 174. ISBN 978-0-7735-7194-5.
^Derek Gregory; Ron Johnston; Geraldine Pratt; Michael Watts; Sarah Whatmore (2009). The Dictionary of Human Geography. John Wiley & Sons. p. 672. ISBN 978-1-4443-1056-6.
^Betty Jane Punnett (2015). International Perspectives on Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management. Routledge. p. 116. ISBN 978-1-317-46745-8.
^Dr. David M. Haskell (Wilfrid Laurier University) (2009). Through a Lens Darkly: How the News Media Perceive and Portray Evangelicals. Clements Publishing Group. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-894667-92-0.
^Kevin Boyle; Juliet Sheen (2013). Freedom of Religion and Belief: A World Report. University of Essex – Routledge. p. 219. ISBN 978-1-134-72229-7.
^Moon, Richard (2008). Law and Religious Pluralism in Canada. UBC Press. pp. 1–4. ISBN 978-0-7748-1497-3.
^Cite error: The named reference The Canadian Encyclopedia 2018 p213 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^McShea, B. (2022). Apostles of Empire: The Jesuits and New France. France Overseas: Studies in Em. Nebraska. p. 15. ISBN 978-1-4962-2908-3. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
^Choquette, R. (2004). Canada's Religions: An Historical Introduction. Religion and Beliefs Series. University of Ottawa Press. p. 160. ISBN 978-0-7766-1847-0. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
^"Orthodox Church". The Canadian Encyclopedia. December 16, 2013. Retrieved August 31, 2023.
^Scott, Jamie S. (2013). The Religions of Canadians. ISBN 978-1-4426-0517-6.
^Scott, Jamie S. (2012). The Religions of Canadians. University of Toronto Press. p. 345. ISBN 978-1-4426-0516-9.
^"Religions in Canada—Census 2011". Statistics Canada. May 8, 2013.
^"Religion by visible minority and generation status: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts". Statistics Canada. October 26, 2022.
^"Sikh Heritage Month Act". laws.justice.gc.ca. January 14, 2020.
^"Sikh Community Profile Infographic – English" (PPT). birmingham.gov.uk. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).
and 30 Related for: Religion in Canada information
ReligioninCanada encompasses a wide range of beliefs and customs. While Christianity was once central and integral to Canadian culture and daily life...
Freedom of religioninCanada is a constitutionally protected right, allowing believers the freedom to assemble and worship without limitation or interference...
The Canadian Encyclopedia. October 27, 2022. Retrieved August 31, 2023. "ReligionsinCanada—Census 2011". Statistics Canada. May 8, 2013. "Religion by...
Islam inCanada is a minority religion practised by approximately 5% of the population. A majority of Muslims are of immigrant backgrounds consisting a...
Religion is a range of social-cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies...
adhered-to religioninCanada, with 19,373,330 Canadians, or 53.3%, identifying themselves as of the 2021 census. The preamble to the Canadian Charter of...
believe in any God. The Canadian Ipsos-Reid poll released September 12, 2011 entitled "Canadians Split On Whether Religion Does More Harm in the World...
Religionin China is diverse and most Chinese people are either non-religious or practice a combination of Buddhism and Taoism with a Confucian worldview...
Ojibwe religion is the traditional Native American religion of the Ojibwe people. It is practiced primarily in north-eastern North America, within Ojibwe...
day. Religion has been a major influence on art, culture, philosophy and law of the continent. Between them, the United States, Mexico and Canada account...
immigrant customs, languages, and religions have combined to form the culture of Canada, and thus a Canadian identity. Canada has also been strongly influenced...
the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. As of 2021, it has the largest number of adherents to a Christian denomination and a religioninCanada, with...
GOUVERNEMENT DE COTE D'IVOIRE (in French). 13 July 2022. "ReligionsinCanada—Census 2021". Statistics Canada/Statistique Canada. 26 October 2022. "Censo de...
third-largest religioninCanada, which is followed by approximately 2.3% of the nation's total population. As of 2021, there are over 828,000 Canadians of the...
on 8 February 2021. Retrieved 9 February 2021. "ReligionsinCanada — Census 2011". Statistics Canada. 8 May 2013. Archived from the original on 19 December...
Freedom of religion is a constitutionally protected right inCanada, allowing believers the freedom to assemble and worship without limitation or interference...
different religions are practised in Indonesia. Indonesia is officially a presidential republic and a unitary state without an established state religion. Indonesia...
population in France identifies as Christian. Catholicism is the most prominent denomination in France, but has long lost the state religion status it...
The largest religionin Europe is Christianity. However, irreligion and practical secularisation are also prominent in some countries. In Southeastern...
Religionin Australia is diverse. In the 2021 national census, 43.9% of Australians identified with Christianity and 38.9% declared "no religion". Australia...
Buddhism is among the smallest minority-religionsinCanada, with a very slowly growing population in the country, partly the result of conversion, with...
and demography There have been questions about religioninCanadain the national census since 1871. In 1951, when the frequency of conducting the national...
The Canadian Society for the Study of Religion (CSSR; French: Société Canadienne pour l'Étude de la Religion [SCÉR]) is a Canadian academic society oriented...
Religionin the United States is widespread, diverse, and vibrant, with the country being far more religious than other wealthy Western nations. An overwhelming...
administrative divisions in the world. Many countries, such as Canada and the United Kingdom, recognize Sikhs as a designated religion on their censuses, and...
institutionalized religions such as Folk Christianity or Folk Islam. In Western contexts, a variety of terms are also employed. In the United States and Canada, a popular...
letters. Canadian Jews, whether by culture, ethnicity, or religion, form the fourth largest Jewish community in the world, exceeded only by those in Israel...
the religion of Islam. It also estimated that 17% practices Christianity, 4% are unaffiliated, and 0.9% of the population practices other religions, mainly...
of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or...
predominant religionin Latin America, Europe, Canada and the United States, the religion is declining in many of these areas, particularly in Western Europe...
Global Information